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Leaf production, growth rate, and age of the palm Prestoea montana in the Luquillo Experimental Forest, Puerto Rico

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 July 2009

Ariel E. Lugo  and
Carmen T. Rivera Batlle
Ariel E. Lugo
Affiliation:
Institute of Tropical Forestry, Southern Forest Experiment Station, USDA Forest Service, PO Box 25000Rio Piedras, P.R. 00928-2500
Carmen T. Rivera Batlle
Affiliation:
Institute of Tropical Forestry, Southern Forest Experiment Station, USDA Forest Service, PO Box 25000Rio Piedras, P.R. 00928-2500
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Abstract

Long-term growth rates of 32 palms (Prestoea montana) were studied using height and diameter measurements taken four times between 1946 and 1982. All leaf scars were counted to estimate leaf production rate, and the distance between scars was measured to establish relationships between leaf production and height growth. Height and diameter growth and leaf production of these palms were not constant during this 36-year period. A greater distance between leaf scars was indicative of rapid height growth but not of high leaf production rate. Dominant palms always grew fast (> 20 cm/yr) in height when they were small, but height growth slowed down when they reached the canopy. Small palms with slow height growth remained suppressed and lost the capacity to grow rapidly in height as adults. Diameter growth decreased with age from 0.07 cm/yr (SE = 0.02) between 1946–51 to 0.01 cm/yr (SE = 0.003) between 1951–82. Annual leaf production averaged 4 leaves/yr over the 36 years of study, was significantly different (P = 0.001) between 1946–51 (5.6 leaves/yr) and 1951–82 (3.8 leaves/yr), and was 4.6 leaves/yr for palms that grew >5 m since 1946 and 3.7 leaves/yr for those that remained suppressed. The best estimate for the mean age of all palms was 61.1 yr (SE = 2.4), obtained from long-term population leaf production rates.

Keywords

leaf turnoverLuquillo Mountainspalmsprestoea montanaPuerto ricotree agetree growth
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of Tropical Ecology , Volume 3 , Issue 2 , May 1987 , pp. 151 - 161
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1987

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